SANATAN PRABHAT EXCLUSIVE : Ignores mosque loudspeakers but targets Ganeshotsav and Diwali celebrations

Hinduphobic and biased functioning of Maharashtra Pollution Control Board

– Mr Pritam Nachankar, Sanatan Prabhat Correspondent, Mumbai

Mumbai, 27 August – The Maharashtra Pollution Control Board recently presented its 2023–24 annual report during the monsoon session of the State Legislature. It mentions areas in Mumbai where pollution occurred. In the same session, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated that 1,149 illegal loudspeakers were removed from mosques in Mumbai. Despite this, the Pollution Control Board, which devotes pages to pollution caused during Hindu festivals, has not even made a passing reference to the loudspeakers or the pollution they cause. This reflects the Board’s bias.

1. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated in the Legislature that of the 1,608 illegal loudspeakers in Mumbai, 1,149 or 72.69 percent were in mosques.

2. Despite year-round use of mosque loudspeakers, the Pollution Control Board’s report does not provide any data on the pollution they cause. Yet it notes in detail the areas affected by pollution during Ganeshotsav and Diwali, which occur only once a year.

3. This selective reporting is not limited to the 2023–24 report. For several years, the Board has routinely published data on how much pollution occurs during Ganeshotsav and Diwali.

4. The 2023–24 report states that sound monitoring was carried out at 132 locations during Ganeshotsav and at 158 during Diwali within the jurisdiction of 27 municipal corporations.

5. It also states that noise pollution during Ganeshotsav was due to celebratory processions during idol immersion, while in Diwali it was due to firecrackers. The statistics provided by the Board appear factually accurate.

Still, the manner in which the Board has acted raises questions about whether it is fulfilling its duty impartially.

Editorial Perspective

Monitoring to prevent misdeeds in the name of festivals is necessary. However, deliberately targeting only Hindu festivals and ignoring the loudspeakers on mosques that operate throughout the year raises serious questions. The Pollution Control Board must act sincerely, not on the basis of religion.